Monday, August 1, 2016

The Glass Ceiling in Education - Teacher in a Strange Land - Education Week Teacher

You've probably seen it--the cartoon with three children's heads. There's a speech bubble over all three kids, saying "I could be President!" Underneath the first--a white boy--the caption reads: Since 1789. Under the second, a black boy, it says: Since 2008. And under the third, a girl, the text is: Since Tuesday.

This isn't a political blog, by the way--it's about education. You know, one of the limited number of fields where women are supposed to be welcomed and excel, like nursing or being someone's uber-efficient administrative assistant. When folks think of a third grade teacher, their mental image is usually a sturdy woman in a denim skirt--with lots of pockets--and comfortable shoes.

Ask about the HS band director, however--and you're probably picturing a harried man in an aging uniform with a stripe on his pant leg, megaphone in hand, directing 100 similarly attired teenagers on the football field. Things are changing--in the late 1970s, there were only seven women HS band directors in the state of Michigan, which has 500+ school districts--but in secondary and university music education, it was a man's world for a century or more.

For all of us who have been discouraged from taking on education jobs that traditionally belonged to men, Tuesday night was a glass-shattering celebration, even for those who aren't Hillary fans. My friend Pat Brumbaugh, who has an impressive resume' as a music educator, wrote this:

When I was very young I was told that I couldn't go to college because I was a girl. I was told that I couldn't play the instrument I wanted to play because I was a girl. I couldn't go hunting or fishing with my Dad because I was a girl. I couldn't learn to fix things because I was a girl. I couldn't be a